Movable belt conveyer



9 94., s, D. RUSSELL 2,481,244

MovABLE BELT coNvEYER Filed March l5, 1945 3 Sheis-Sheat 1 Q I UV' Sept,6 i949. s. D. RUSSELL 2,43L244 MOVABLE BELT CONVEYER Filed March 13,1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 L L E s s u R D. s

MOVABLE BELT CONVEYER 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 13, 1945 PatentedSept. 6, 1949 MOVABLE BELTy CONVEYER Stanley D. Russell, Racine, Wis.,assignmto J. l. Case Company, Racine, Wis., a corporation of WisconsinApplication March 13, 1945, Serial No. 582,501

4 claims. l

This application relates to movable belt conveyors, more particularly itrelates to moving belt conveyors having a series of parallel spacedconveyor belts for pickup balers for hay -or the like and it is anobject of the invention to provide an improved conveyor of the characterindicated.

It is a further object of the invention to provide an improved conveyorhaving a plurality of parallel conveyor belts wherein the hay or othercrop rests substantially entirely on the conveyor belts.

It is a further object of the invention to provide an improved conveyorhaving a plurality of parallel conveyor belts in which each belt has anindividual continuous support substantially throughout its entirelength.

In carrying out the invention in one form, a conveyor for cropharvesting apparatus is provided in which the conveyor comprises a deck,drive means at one end of the deck, a guide means at the other end ofthe deck and a plurality of parallel belts vertically spaced from thedeck and extending around the drive and guide means. Individual supportsare provided for each of the plurality of belts to space the beltsvertically from the deck and to provide a continuous support for thebelt throughout its length. The lateral spac- Ling of the supports andthe vertical spacing of the belts are related so that the harvestedmaterial being conveyed does not sag intol contact with the deck.

For a more complete understanding of the invention, reference should nowbe had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary view in perspective of an assembled balerembodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view with a transverse section broken out of theconveyor shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view with a section broken out takensubstantially in the direction of the arrows 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view with a section broken out takensubstantially in the direction of arrows 4-4 of Fig. 2; and l Fig. 5 isa top plan view partially broken away and with central sections brokenout of Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings in more'detail, the ini ention is embodied ina pickup baler I0 including a conveyor II. While the conveyor Il isshown and will be described in connection with a hay baler, it will beclear to those skilled in the art that changes' may be made to adapt theconveyor for use in any application where articles are to be conveyed,particularly Where the articles are relatively limp, such as cured cropswithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

The hay baler I0 is of a well known type and is adapted to be driven ina direction indicated by the arrow A by a tractor or any other suitableCl. Hi8-190) means not illustrated. lThe baler comprises a frameworksupporting the various elements including a pickup device I2, a hopperI3, the conveyor II, a feed roller Ila, a baling chamber I4 and a powerdevice for operating the baling mechanism which is exemplified by thefly wheel I5. The baler mechanism is supported on two wheels connectedby an axle, only the wheel I6 being shown.

The pickup device I2 comprisesa cylinder I6 supported within a series ofcurved\stripper elements I1 by support members I8 at each end. Thesupport members I8, in addition to supportingthe pickup device I6withih\the` stripper elements, attach the complete pickupndevice to thebaler framework as shown. Forming part of the pickup cylinder I6 are aplurality of rows of spring tines I9 extending outwardly from the pickupcylinder and spaced between the various stripper elements I'I. Thepickup cylinder is adapted to rotate in a direction indicated by thearrow B when the baler is moved along the ground thereby causing thetines I9 to pick up the windrow of hay over which the baler is beingpulled. The pickup mechanism is supported in such a position that theends of the tines I9 are clear of the ground at all times, the heightbeing adjusted for particular conditions.

Spaced directly in back and at the top of the pickup device is a hopperI3 which includes an end feeder sheet 2l), a back feeder sheet 2| and awind guard 22. Forming the oor ofthe hopper I3 is the conveyor assemblyII and closing the other end of the hopper is the feeder drum IIa whichis adapted to be driven through a suitable mechanism indicated by thechain 23 and the sprocket 24. Extending over the stripper elements I'Iis avwind guard 25 having a series of elements 26 joined by alongitudinal member 21. The longitudinal member is pivoted to thebrackets 28 and is biased in the downward direction by means of a spring29 so that any hay that is picked up by the spring tines I9 is carriedunderneath of elements 26 and is thereby prevented from being blown oifof the baler. To insure that all of the material to be picked up isguided into the pickup device, the flare sheets 30 are arranged at eachend of the pickup device. As the baler is towed along in the direction Athe revolving tines I9 pick up the material from the windrow, carry itover the stripper elements I1 and force the material into the conveyorII which moves in the direction of the arrow C. The conveyor Il carriesthe material into contact with the feeder drum I Ia which feeder drumforces the material into the baling chamber I4. It will be apparent fromthis description that the baling process is carried on in a continuousand direct manner.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 2, 3, 4 and purposes of clarity.The sills 3| extend throughout the length of the conveyor, form the sideframes thereof and include base flanges 34 for attaching the conveyor toa baler, vertical webs 35 and the top anges 35, the anges 34 and 35providing the `necessary rigidity for the sills to resist horizontalbending. The sills 3| are spaced apart laterally and rigidly heldbetween them,

` below the top flanges 36, is the conveyor deck 32 whichlncludes aflatportion extending substantially the full `length of the conveyor anddownwardly extendingiflanges 31 'at thesides of the fiat portion whichserve to im art stiffness to the deck and to which the sills 'refastened by means ofthe bolts 38. One endof the conveyor deck is bent toform the downwardly extending flange 39 and to further stiil'enfthedeck, stiifening ribs 40 are welded thereto at spaced intervals. Thestiil'ening ribs may be angle members, as shown, or they may be of anyothendesired shape and further the stiifening ribs may be fastened tothe deck by well known means other than welding, such as rivets forexample. Fastened to the other end of the conveyor deck, by means ofbolts, there is an angle member 55 having its flange 66 extending beyondthe edge of the deck to form a supporting ledge for a purpose to bedescribed. The iiat conveyor deck and the sills at the sides thereofunite to`form a rigid table-like structure for supporting the operatingshafts at the ends of the sills and for supporting the conveying beltson the conveyor deck.

Extending parallel to the sills 3|.; and laterally spaced apart fromeach other are a plurality of belt supports 4|, each belt support havingatop surface along which a conveyor belt. is adapted to move, the topsurface being vertically spaced from the conveyor deck. Each belt'support includes a spacing rib or shim 42 and a channel guiding memberor a glide 43 lying along the upper surface ofthe spacing shim 42, theglide 43` and the shim 42 being fastened to each other and to theconveyor deck 32 by means of conical headed bolts 44. The glide 43 is ofmetal and includes a base which lies next to the spacing shim andvertical side anges between which a portion of the belt -is receivedthereby lto prevent the belt from coming oil. of the belt support, thetop surfaces of the vertical side flanges serving as the sliding surfacefor the belts. While the belt supports 4| areshown as being made of twoparts, a spacing rib 42 and a guiding member 43, it will be understoodthat the supports may be made of a single member which may be metal, forexample, whereas in the illustrated construction the glide is made ofmetal while the spacing ansi-,ais

non on the spacing nb ma bending the gude to conform thereto.

Supported at the baling chamber end of the conveyor, for driving theconveying belts, isa sprocket sleeve 45 which consists of a hollowcylindrical body 48 and axially spaced sprockets 41. The h'ollow body 43is of relative large diameter and the sprockets are integrally formedtherewith, the spacing of the sprockets along the shaft being such thateach sprocket is in alignment with one of the belt supports so that abelt engaging one of the sprockets will be received in a glide of acorresponding belt support. The sprocket sleeve is' mounted on the sills3| by means of stub shafts supported in bearings which are contained inbearing cups 43 attached to the vertical webs of the sills 3|. Attachedat one end to the sprocket sleeve 45 is a sprocket 43 by means of whichthe sprocket sleeve is driven. 4

Supported at the outer end of the conveyor is a guide or idler s1eeve50which consists of a -hollow cylindrical member 5| and a series ofintegrally formed circumferential ridges'52. The ridges are formed inpairs 'defining a circumferential groove between them to receive one ofthe conveyor belts, the grooves being axially spaced and each groovebeing in alignment with one of the spacing ribs 4|. The idler sleeve 50is adiustably mounted in the sills by means of stub shafts 53 extendingfrom the ends ofthe idler sleeve, which stub shafts extend through theslots 54 in the sills. 'I'he stub shafts 53 are received in the eyes ofthe eye bolts 55 which extend rearwardly through openings in the plates'53. Wing nuts 51 serve toadiust the eye bolts 55 and consequentlyadjust the position of the idler sleeve5 to tighten or loosen the belts33 passing around corresponding sprockets and circumferential grooves.It is clear that a stationary guide may be substituted for the idlersleeve since the idler sleeve serves merely to position the conveyingbelts and is .made to rotate to substan tially eliminate friction.

The structure as thus far described is a framework which comprises ailat deck supported by two side members or sills 3| which side membersalso serve to support a driving sprocket 45 and a grooved idler sleeve50. Fastened to the flat deck are a series of channel guide members 43which are vertically spaced from the deck and which are in alignmentwith the sprockets -on the driving sprocket at one end of the conveyorand the circumferential grooves on the idler sleeve at the other end ofthe conveyor. To convey the material a plurality of endless link beltsor chains are arranged on the conveyor so that the links .53 of eachbelt are engaged by one of the drive sprockets at one end of theconveyor and porrib is made of wood in the interest of material geconomy. Referring to Fig. 4, it will be seen' have downwardly taperedportions at one end,

the tapered end of the spacing ribs being sub- 1 stantially flush withthe conveyor deck. This construction is eil'ected by cutting a taperedportions of the links are received in the grooves of the idler sleeve atthe other end and within the channel members 43. The links 58 are of awell known type in which two tongues 59 and 60 are stamped from arectangular piece of metal. The tongue 59 is bent rearwardly to form ahook which lengages that portion of the link formed by bending thetongue 50 of an adjacent link forwardly, the interengagement of thetongues 59 and 50 effectively constituting a hinge about which any twoadjacent links bend. The curved tongue or hook 59 of each link isreceived between the vertical flanges of the channel member 43 and thecircumferential grooves on the idler sleeve 50 to confine each beit toits particular support, thev sprocket teeth 41 engaging the links bymeans of the hole resulting by stamping out the tongues 59 and 80. Asshown, after the tongues 59 and 60 are stamped out webs 60a are left atthe sides of the links, which webs lie on the vertical fianges of thechannel member to support the belts or chains. While a. continuous linkchain has been shown it will be clear that the conveyor structure may bemodied to adapt it to use flexible belts made of rubber, textiles orother well known belts or the like without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention.

To prevent any material being conveyed from becoming entangled with theidler sleeve 50 a guard plate 6I is fastened to the sills 3|. The guardplate extends over the idler sleeve and forwardly a sufficient distanceover the guide channels 43 and the chains 33 received therein so thatmaterial is unable to work itself rearwardly to the idler sleeve. At thebaling chamber end of the conveyor a stripper sheet having a series ofparallel tongues 62 extending from a connecting member 63 is arrangedwith the tongues 62 spaced between the sprockets. The tongues 62 curveupwardly from the conveyor deck, curve around the sprockets and extenddownwardly to join with the connecting member 63 thereby to completelyshield the sprockets and cause any material moving on the conveyor to beremoved from the conveyor belts. In order to have a substantially smoothdeck at all points the ends of the tongues 62 are fastened to the flange66, the thickness of the tongues being such that the deck surface andthe tongues are ush with each other.

As pointed out previously in this application, the ends of the beltsupports 4| taper at the end adjacent the baling chamber. Since thetapered end of the spacing rib 42 is substantially ush with the conveyordeck the conveyor belts lie substantially flat on the conveyor deck whenthe belts leave the guide channels 43 (Fig. 4). There is. therefore. adepressed or lowered portion of the conveyor which is placed below thefeeder drum Ila in the assembled condition of the baler.

The spacing between the adjacent ones voi' the conveyor belts and theheight of the belts oi of surface of the conveyor deck are factors indetermining the construction of a conveyor so that the particular typeof hay or similar material being conveyed will not sag into contact withthe conveyor deck. Thus if the stalks are stii wide spacing and lowheight is desirable and for stalks which are relatively limp a closespacing and a greater height must be used. It has been found thatoptimum results, i. e. the hay does not sag into contact with the deck,in case of ordinary hay which has been raked into a window are obtainedby having a ratio of spacing of the belt supports to the height of thebelt supports oif of the conveyor deck of approximately four.

While a particular embodiment oi the invention has been shown it will beunderstood, of course, that the invention is not limited thereto sincemany modifications may be made, and itis, therefore, contemplated by theappended claims to cover any such modifications as come within the truespirit and scope of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired to besecured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a conveyor, a deck, an active element including an upwardly openchannel member disposed above said deck, and a length of chain of thecharacter provided with a series of central projecting hinge portions,and a web projecting at each side of said hinge portions, said chainbeing positioned on said channel in a mannerrsuch that the projectinghinge portions extend downwardly into the channel and the side webs reston the upwardly directed edges of thechannel, and means for moving the`chain in the desired direct on.

2. In a conveyor, the combination of a deck portion, a plurality ofsubstantially parallel upwardly open channel members spaced above saiddeck, a length of chain associated with each channel. said chain beingof a character providing a series of central projecting hinge portionsand a web projecting at each side, said chains being positioned on saidchannels in a manner such that the projecting hinge portions engage thechannels in guided relation and the web portions rest on the upwardlydirected edges of the channels, and said parallel channels beingsufflciently close to each other that material resting on said chainswill bridge the space between adjacent chains and not sag between theminto contact with said deck, and means for imparting movement to saidchains.

3. In a conveyor for handling cut crop brous material, a substantiallyhorizontal deck, a plurality of endless chains having their upper runsparallel and extending above said deck transversely of the line oftravel of the apparatus, a plurality of elongated parallel guiding andsupporting elements for said upper runs for supporting them and guidingthem to travel a, substantial distance above said deck, sprocket wheelsengaging said chains, respectively, at the delivery end thereof, andstripper means at the delivery end extending upwardly and rearwardlyfrom the delivery end of the deck to a position between the chains.

4. In a conveyor for handling cut crop brous material, a substantiallyhorizontal deck, a plurality of endless chains having their upper runsparallel and extending above said deck transversely of' the line oftravel of the apparatus, a plurality of elongated parallel guiding andsupporting elements for said upper runs for supporting them and guidingthem to travel a substantial distance above said deck, sprocket wheelsengaging said chains, respectively, at the delivery end thereof, andstripper means at the delivery end extending upwardly and rearwardlyfrom the delivery end of the deck to a position between the chains andadjacent the outer periphery of said sprocket wheels.

STANLEY D. RUSSELL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 707,343 Naysmith et al Allg. 19,1902 869,654 Rideout Oct. 29, 1907 964,191 Steele July 12, 19101,201,412 Williams Oct. 17, 1916 1,282,379 Christensen Oct. 22, 19181,535,785 Luce Apr. 28, 1925 1,555,577 Horner Sept. 29, 1925 1,868,538McKee et al. July 26, 1932

